The Dreamscape
by Kitsanken
Summary: What does Kenshin dream about? Definitely not your run of the mill nightmares...COMPLETE
1. Part 1

**Rurouni**** Kenshin Fanfic**

**_Summary:_**_What does Kenshin dream about? Definitely not your run of the mill nightmares..._

_- G - English – Horror/Humour – Multi-Chapter - Status: Complete –_

_Rurouni__ Kenshin & Samurai X Original Japanese Version © N.Watsuki/Shueisha Fuji-TV SME Visual Works Inc. Sony Pictures Entertainment_

_All Fanfics created by Chiruken (me) were written for the sole purpose of shared entertainment and not intended for publication or sale._

**The Dreamscape**

By: Chiruken

**Part 1**

Cold, ugly and gray for as far as the eye can see. The ground, the sky and all in between the same lifeless colour. Nothing in any direction to break the bleak monotony of the drab and dreary landscape.

I know this place. I know it well. I resided here for a short time…an eternity. It is nightmares made real, horrors brought to existence…memories relived. It is called…The Dreamscape. I hate it here.

It is the same as I remember it…yet different somehow. It is a terrible place, one I thought to never return to. And yet…here I am. What horrors await me this time? What memories will return? What nightmares will come to life? I don't want to be here.

I step forward reluctantly, unwilling to enter further in to the nightmare, but unable to stop from doing so. Puffs of grey dust rise from the deadened ground to curl around my ankles and I shudder, my mind conjuring ghostly fingers reaching out to me. The still air is suddenly moving, calling out in plaintive moans, grating on the nerves, terrifying in its eerie resemblance to a parody of human voices.

I halt abruptly and turn at the sound of flapping wings. "Korosu! Korosu!" I wince at the harsh, accusing cry of a crow. I search the sky for the black bird of bad omens, intending to run in the opposite direction from it.

My jaw drops and I stare in disbelief as a purple feather drifts down. "Oro?!" I've never heard of a purple crow. "This could be bad, that it could." I turn and hurry away, hoping the strangely coloured bird doesn't follow.

I can see something in the distance rising from the grey soil like a marker or signpost. I shrug and turn my steps in that direction. As I draw nearer I can see that it is indeed a signpost. The words are too faded to make out from this far away so I hurry closer.

Just as I reach the marker an orange owl perches on it and stares at me with unblinking eyes. I stumble back as its beak opens wide and its voice echoes across the barren landscape. "Kuru'u! Kuru'u!" With loud flapping of its brightly coloured wings, it flies away.

I shake my head sharply and rub my eyes, but the orange owl is gone. I laugh nervously and move closer to the sign. "I'm definitely seeing things, that I am." I study the faded kanji with a frown. "This way to the Sea of Drowned Koi. Drowned koi?! Oro?" I sigh and head in the direction indicated.

I don't remember anything like this happening before when I came to The Dreamscape. Much has changed it seems. I'm not certain if it's for the better. I wonder where the signpost came from. It wasn't here the last time I was trapped in this kami-forsaken place.

Why now, after all this time, have I been drawn back into this nightmare? It doesn't make sense. I've made peace with the past…haven't I? Learning the Ama Kakeru no Hirameki saw to that…didn't it? Living the life of rurouni stopped my return to The Dreamscape somewhat, but completing my training, learning the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu's final attack should've ensured I'd never again come to this place. "So why am I here?" I close my eyes and shake my head slowly. Obviously, I wasn't nearly as successful at putting my past to rest as I thought.

I open my eyes, blink and stare at a grey, leafless tree in front of me that hadn't been there a moment before. Movement in its branches catches my attention and I take a hasty step back at the odd sight that greets my eyes. "Kutsuu! Kutsuu!" Hearing that harsh word in such a lovely voice is disconcerting, but seeing a blood red dove is just plain horrifying.

"I have to wake up!" I quickly leave the tree and dove behind me and continue in the direction the sign indicated, and then stop abruptly. "Maybe I shouldn't go this way. Maybe I should go back instead."

"Mae, baka! Mae, baka!" I look down at the croaked words and watch as a blue frog hops past me, a startling contrast to the dull gray of the ground.

"Forward, then…to the Sea of Drowned Koi." I sigh and continue forward. I take three steps and blink in surprise. "Oro?" I stare in open-mouthed shock at the vast, grey body of water spread before me. "Well…this is a surprise, that it is." I'm beginning to feel more than a little uneasy. This nightmare is becoming ridiculous. "What next?"

"Goujou na!" I look down at the drawled words. "Goujou na."

"It's a turtle. A pink turtle. A pink turtle sitting on a rock by a sea that wasn't here a moment ago." I slowly lower myself to the ground beside the odd creature. "I think it was something I ate, that I do."

"Goujou na." Is the turtle's reply.

"I'm certain it was the grilled eel that Kaoru-dono prepared for dinner. I'll be fine in the morning…I hope."

"Goujou na." The turtle says again.

"I might feel a little ill, but once that eel is out of my system I should be all right." I pointedly ignore the talking turtle and stare at the still water instead.

"Ugoku." I turn at the loud grunt on my left and find myself nose to snout with a yellow pig. "Ugoku."

"Mae, baka." The blue frog is perched on the pig's head and glaring at me. I didn't know frogs could glare like this. I refuse to acknowledge that frogs don't talk, either.

I stare at the water with a frown, and then stand. "I want to wake up!" My voice echoes hollowly across the desolate landscape, but I don't wake up and nothing changes. I throw my hands up in frustration. "I can't move forward…there's a sea in front of me!"

"Mae, baka! Mae, baka!" The frog is quite insistent.

"Oh, shut up." I snap over my shoulder and move to the water's edge, my eyes focusing on something black drifting closer. "Drowned koi." I state flatly.

"Achira." One listless fin points to my right. "Achira."

"Of course. Silly me." I turn and hurry away. "Please… Please…Let me wake up soon!"

"Kuru'u! Kuru'u!" A bright orange feather floats past my nose on the faint breeze.

I look up and nod miserably. "I think you're right, that I do. I swear I'll never eat Kaoru's grilled eel again." I stop and close my eyes, my hands clenched into fists at my sides.

"It wasn't the eel."

**_To Be Continued…_**

**_Author's Notes:_**

_1.This was intended to be a one-shot at first, but, hey, I like cliffhangers._

_2.Very short…I think that's just my style. Think of it as "Kenshin-Ryu" Writing. (Kenshin is short, and so is my writing!) ( GACK That was a terrible attempt at a __2am__ joke! Gomen gomen mina-san!)_

_**Definitions:**_

_**korosu: **to murder, to kill   
**kuru'u: ** to go mad   
**koi: ** carp   
**kutsuu**: pain; agony; anguish   
**mae**: forward   
**baka: ** stupid   
**goujou**** (na):** bullheaded; stubborn; unyielding   
**ugoku**: move   
**achira**: that way_


	2. Part 2

**Rurouni**** Kenshin Fanfic**

**_Summary:_**_What does Kenshin dream about? Definitely not your run of the mill nightmares..._

_- G - English – Horror/Humour – Multi-Chapter - Status: Complete –_

_Rurouni__ Kenshin & Samurai X Original Japanese Version © N.Watsuki/Shueisha Fuji-TV SME Visual Works Inc. Sony Pictures Entertainment_

_All Fanfics created by Chiruken (me) were written for the sole purpose of shared entertainment and not intended for publication or sale._

**The Dreamscape**

By: Chiruken

**Part 2**

"It wasn't the eel." I jump and whirl at the soft words uttered in a cold, flat voice. I take a hasty step back, then another, putting some much needed distance between myself and the apparition before me.

"Goujou na..." The drawled words echo around me and fade into silence.

"Precisely. You're too stubborn, Kenshin."

I shake my head slowly and watch as the younger version of myself…Battousai…steps closer. "I don't understand, that I do not."

"You think to bury me so deeply within your subconscious that I'll never come out again."

"You aren't needed now. This is the Meiji Era, Battousai. You aren't necessary any more, that you are not."

"I am needed." I shake my head in firm denial. "Yes, Kenshin. You need me."

"I do not!" I draw in a quick, calming breath. "You embody all that I've come to regret. I don't need you, that I do not."

"You need me…you're just too stubborn to admit it. You need my strength of will, my driving purpose…and I need your quiet resolve and gentle nature."

"Oro?" I scratch my head uncertainly. "I don't understand, that I do not."

"We are two halves of the same whole. I need you just as you need me. Separate, we are incomplete, one short step from the precipice falling into the oblivion of madness. Together, we are whole and safely rooted in sanity."

"However, you represent the violence in my nature that I never wish to resurrect again."

"Yes, and you represent the kindness I knew for only a short time. I want to feel that way again, Kenshin. I need to feel tenderness again."

"Why now?" It's impossible to not be moved by the wistfulness in his voice.

"Why not? I've waited for over a decade. I can wait no longer. Embrace me as I embrace you. Give up the life of rurouni…"

"No! That I cannot do! If what you've said is true, you must understand…"

"That you fear killing again. I know this, Kenshin, but it doesn't have to happen. You…no, we…have a chance at happiness, of living a peaceful life, but as long as you continue being a rurouni it will pass us by."

"What are you talking about?" I frown in bewilderment. "I am happy and I don't need to renounce my…"

"Vow to never kill again?" He finishes for me. "Of course you don't. Do you honestly believe that's what I want?" He shakes his head with a scowl. "Baka."

"Then… Then what is it that you're saying?" I pointedly ignore the insult.

"You haven't been a rurouni…not in the truest sense of the word…since you met Kaoru. Is it really so difficult to say you like it at the Kamiya Doujou and want to call it home? You're happy there…you have a family, Kenshin."

"True… What you say is true, but…" I frown thoughtfully. "What is it that you want of me Battousai?"

"Let me enjoy it, too."

"No. I can't place Kaoru-dono in danger."

"As if I'd do anything to cause her harm. Think about it, Kenshin. If I am you and you are me, the same person, do you honestly believe I could possibly do anything to hurt Kaoru?" He looks insulted by the idea.

"This could be an elaborate trap, that it could."

"It could also be the absolute truth." He moves closer, amber eyes narrowing. "I want out, Kenshin. I'm tired of being buried in your subconscious. I want to live again…and love again. If you refuse to meet me half way…" He shifts his stance, revealing the katana at his side and resting his hand on the hilt. "I'm not above forcing your compliance."

I reach for my sakabattou and mirror his stance. "You are welcome to try. However, you will find that I am no weak opponent to be swept aside."

"I don't want things to be this way. Don't force me to push the issue, Kenshin. We need each other." I begin to slowly draw my sakabattou. "Whatever happens here has repercussions in the waking world and as such any action either of us commit will have lasting effects on your mind. Remember that before you draw your sakabattou and challenge me."

"Repercussions? What kind of repercussions?" I narrow my eyes suspiciously. He could be bluffing, trying to distract me.

"Physically, nothing will happen. But mentally…" He shrugs eloquently. "You have seen men damaged in mind but whole in body, have you not?"

I shudder at the ugly reminder of what too much violence can do to a person's mind. "So…you are still willing to take that chance? After all, you challenged me, that you did."

"Give me a chance, Kenshin. I promise not to do anything…violent. I just want to live again, that's all." He relaxes his stance, andthen to my surprise tosses his katana to the side. "See? I'm willing to compromise."

"And if it doesn't work the way you say…what then? Will you willingly step aside and return…here?" I gesture around us at the barren grey landscape.

He lowers his head with a sigh. "Yes. I'll return to the emptiness if that's what is best."

I fold my arms over my chest and narrow my eyes. I don't trust him. "Who decides what is best, Battousai?"

He meets my narrowed gaze and smiles. "We do, of course. It must be a mutual decision." His smile fades. "Like it was at the end of the revolution."

I nod slowly. "All right. We can try. However, one violent action and you're gone. Agreed?"

"That, Kenshin, is open to debate. What if Kaoru were in danger? Like when Jineh abducted her? Or Saito threatened her? Or…"

I scowl in annoyance. "I didn't notice you sitting idly by in either situation, that I did not. Killing is absolutely not an option no matter what the circumstances."

"That wouldn't have happened if you didn't stick me back here, you know. But I agree with you. Kaoru would be…sad…if we killed again."

I nod in agreement. "How does this work?"

"When you wake up, we'll be one. It isn't complicated at all."

"Very well…on a trial basis I'll agree to this, that I will."

He smiles brightly, a strange expression on his normally impassive face. "I look forward to it. Now…wake up. It's morning."

_Owari_

**_Author's notes:_**

_1.Okey Dokey…For the record, I wouldn't have normally used so many Japanese terms (in Part One) BUT think about how they sound. The intention was to use words that sounded like the animals originally sound. You know, pigs grunt, hence a word that, when spoken in Japanese, sounds similar to that: Ugoku. I mean really, does "Move" sound grunty? THAT was why I chose Japanese terms. Sorry if I confused the issue._

_2.Next: When I write, I usually place the definitions immediately behind the word in the text…BUT, this has met with some dissatisfaction. I've been told (and I partially agree) that it interrupts the flow of the story. Hence, the definitions at the end of the story. Would it be better to place them at the beginning?_

_3.Blah. This didn't end the way I wanted it to. It got too serious. shrugs Maybe I'll have better luck next time._

_4.Icky…way too much dialogue and not enough action. Sorry. I'll try to work on that later._


End file.
